Metallica’s Kirk Hammett: ‘Maybe It’s Time to Think About Doing a Covers Album’

Metallica’s 10th studio album, Hardwired… to Self-Destruct, will finally see daylight on Nov. 18. However, fans may see another Metallica release sooner than later.

Metallica fans hold a special place in their hearts for Garage Inc. It’s one of the most successful cover albums of all time, having sold over six million copies worldwide. Featuring covers recorded over the span of a decade, Garage Inc. gave us re-imagined renditions of Misfits’ “Last Caress,” Thin Lizzy’s version of “Whisky in the Jar,” Diamond Head’s “Am I Evil?’ and many others.

During Metallica’s live Q&A session held earlier today (Nov. 16), Kirk Hammett revealed the band has been talking about doing another covers album since their Bridge School Benefit concert in October. “While we were doing the Bridge show last month, we had a bunch of covers that we were throwing around and playing. I just realized how fun it is to actually play other peoples’ songs in this band,” Hammett said. “No matter what song you give us, when we start playing it, it’s just going to naturally sound different.”

Kirk continued, “I recognize there’s a lot of uniqueness to that and a lot of beauty and a lot of fun. It kind of got me thinking and other guys in the band thinking that maybe it’s time to think about doing a covers album. Just a fun sort of thing, something that we want to do that we think would be fun to share with everyone.”

At the Bridge School Benefit, Metallica experimented with jams of Deep Purple’s “When a Blind Man Cries” and The Clash’s “Clampdown,” so maybe we’ll hear those in recorded form soon! Keep your eyes open for updates and make sure to grab Hardwired… to Self-Destruct on Nov. 18.

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